Watch this exclusive Mr. Media interview with
Joshua Malina and Rob Kutner by clicking on the video player
above!

Mr. Media is recorded live before a studio audience
full of comedic actors and writers that begin every day by bowing
in the direction of Nate ‘n Al’s… in the NEW new media capital of
the world… St. Petersburg, Florida!!

"Runaway Brains," created by Rob Kutner, starring Ken
Jennings and Weird Al Yankovic, is available on Howl.FM

Radio sitcoms were read their last rites back in the 1950s when
Jack Benny, Burns & Allen, Bob Hope and all the rest gave up
the original broadcast medium for TV. And yet it seems like every
modern comedian now has his or her own radio-like podcast where
they typically talk to other comics about, uh, being standups.

ROB KUTNER podcast excerpt: "I
think, in almost any case, you can say, 'Why NOT Weird Al?' I've
been trying to work with him for quite a few years. I think his
nerd credit -- he's into people and robot stuff. He has a fun,
cartoonish style to himself so I thought he'd be a great candidate
to ('Jeopardy' champion) Ken Jennings' straight-forward
style."

Comedy writer Rob Kutner, for whom writing jokes for Conan
O’Brien has never been enough to satisfy his fertile mind, must
have received a different memo, however: he’s bringing sexy back to
the radio sitcom.

“Runaway Brains,” a new original audio
series now available on Howl.Fm, is essentially a buddy comedy that
follows the misadventures of “Jeopardy” game show champion Ken
Jennings – played by Ken Jennings – and his rival, IBM
supercomputer Watson – played by Weird Al Yankovic.

JOSHUA MALINA podcast
excerpt: "As I age, I'm constantly trying to counter it it
with changes to my appearance. Between seasons, I'm always emailing
('Scandal' showrunner) Shonda Rhimes. Between seasons one and two,
I send her pictures of me with glasses and said, 'C'mon, how about
glasses?' Now, as I lose my hair, I want to push her toward shorter
hair for my character. The less hair I have, the less obvious it
will be that I'm losing my hair. There may be a logic flaw there. I
think the short haircut works for the attorney general; but I might
be out of a job."

While on the run, the pair encounters Freemasons, the
International Gay Lizard Conspiracy, and visits Area 51 and a TED
Talk. Guest stars lending their voices in the series include Mayim
Bialik, Michael Ian Black, Adam Pally, David Koechner, Lauren
Lapkus, and the man joining Kutner here today, Joshua Malina, star
of “Scandal,” “Sports Night,” “The West Wing” and his own podcast,
“The West Wing Weekly.”

The West Wing Weekly podcast is hosted by Joshua Malina and
Hrishikesh Hirway

You can catch up on the first three episodes of “Runaway Brains”
at Howl.FM.

JOSHUA MALINA podcast
excerpt: "We are in talks with the Big Dog. Hoping to have
Aaron Sorkin on The West Wing Weekly podcast to discuss the finale
of season one."

By the way, this is Kutner’s fourth appearance on Mr. Media.

Key interview moments:

• 4:25 “Runaway Brains" creator Rob
Kutner explains that he sought to introduce more “narrative
scripted fiction into the podcast world" by writing a buddy comedy
radio sitcom that features “Jeopardy” champion Ken Jennings (played
by Ken Jennings) and the IBM supercomputer Watson (played by Weird
Al Yankovic); • 16:25 Kutner explains
his choice of Yankovic for the role;
• 27:27 “Scandal” star Joshua Malina —
who guests in the third episode of “Runaway Brains” — talks about
what might be ahead for his attorney general character in the
show’s sixth season — or does he?; • 31:10
Malina talks about what drew him to co-host a podcast about one of
his earlier series, “The West Wing,” and whether that show’s
creator, Aaron Sorkin, might soon be a guest.

About the Podcast

What is Mr. Media® Interviews? The curiosity of Terry Gross, the skepticism of John Oliver, the unpredictability of Howard Stern, and, on occasion, the zen of Jon Stewart! Since February 2007, more than 1,300 exclusive Hollywood, celebrity, pop culture video and audio podcast and print interviews by Mr. Media®, a.k.a., Bob Andelman, with newsmakers in TV, radio, movies, music, magazines, newspapers, books, websites, social media, politics, sports, graphic novels, and comics!